This disclosure relates generally to the field of computer security, and more particularly to search privacy using policy-based search terms.
Users who engage in web (i.e., internet) browsing may want their activities to remain private, for example, when exploring employment opportunities, or to avoid unwanted advertisements. While major web browser providers may offer a private browsing option, the web site hosting companies can collect search terms and IP addresses, thereby still tracking user activities. The search engine providers can perform analytics on the collected user information, the results of which may disclose activity patterns and defeat the private browsing option.
Providing a policy-based web search ability may improve anonymity and privacy while web browsing, and may contribute to users' security because key demographic information, such as geographic location can be kept private.